Alan Buckley Profile

His time at Lincoln coincided with The Imps' worst ever cash shortage. Events off the field were so dire that the club were just hours away from liquidation in May 2002. Money was therefore unavailable for Buckley to buy players and he was forced to seek free transfers. Towards the later stages of his time at Sincil Bank, he was unable to bring in the loan players that he had wanted because the players' current club would not agree to pay their wages as Lincoln could not afford to do so. Only Hull City agreed, and a grateful Buckley was able to sign defender Matt Bloomer on loan in March 2002.

Buckley left Lincoln on April 25th 2002 along with several players, as the Imps were forced to make drastic cuts to help safeguard the club's future. The sack had been expected, not least because Lincoln had yet again narrowly avoided relegation from the Football League. With little cash to spend, Buckley was forced to sign some of his former players from Grimsby, such as Kingsley Black and Ian Hamilton. Alas, age had now caught up with these players and the Lincoln City fans made their concerns heard at matches.

In total, Buckley brought in ten new players during his 14 month reign; it is fair to say that only Paul Morgan and possibly Kingsley Black were a success. Though that is not a fair reflection on Buckley's talent spotting skills, as he found quality players for his previous club Grimsby Town.

Buckley's record at Lincoln City was not good, with only 16 wins from 72 games, while many criticised his tactics as boring. However, despite lacking the opportunity to bring in the players that he wanted, he stuck with his principles and made Lincoln City a passing team. The 2002/03 season was supposedly going to be different, as he intended bringing in "his type of player". Many Imps' fans continue to wonder whether Lincoln City could have prospered under Alan Buckley's leadership if the financial backing had been available.

Buckley made a brief return to management in June 2003 when he took charge at Rochdale. He lasted just six months, or rather twenty-eight matches of which he won just five. However, in December 2006, he made a shock return to Grimsby Town where he began his third spell as manager. At the time, Grimsby were struggling in League Two, but Buckley's appointment saw them win their battle against relegation.

Alan Buckley's Lincoln City record: P 72 W 16 D 27 L 29

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